Emmanuel Petit reveals he snubbed Arsenal return and Premier League giant to join Chelsea

Emmanuel Petit has revealed that he turned down a return to Arsenal to sign for London rivals Chelsea instead.

The French legend and double-winner with the Gunners admitted that he opted to snub a return to the club in 2001.

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Petit departed north London in 2000 after a three-year spell, joining Barcelona in a transfer he said was out of his control.

That move to Barca didn’t work out too well, as injuries hampered his time in Spain and he only stuck around for a season.

His struggle to settle saw the iconic midfielder receive multiple offers to head back to the Premier League – including from Arsenal, who had decided to sell him only months beforehand.

He would end up snubbing the Gunners though, deciding to make the move to Chelsea instead for a fee of £7.5million.

“It was quite hard for me to understand,” Petit began on talkSPORT’s White and Jordan. “Six months after leaving, I received a phone call from Arsene Wenger saying that I want you back at Arsenal.

“Claudio Ranieri came to Barcelona, at my home, we had lunch and that’s why I signed for Chelsea.

“I received two phone calls from Sir Alex Ferguson. He was aiming to bring me to Manchester United.

“Arsene called me as well and he said I think we made a mistake. You should come back to Arsenal.

“I thought to myself why? Why? Why didn’t you do anything to keep me at Arsenal? Then all of a sudden you change your mind.

“It’s like you’re divorcing from your wife and after three months you already realise it’s a mistake and you want to go back to the old days. That’s impossible. It doesn’t work like that.”

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Why did Petit choose Chelsea?

Petit went on to explain exactly why he decided to turn down a return to Arsenal or a move to Man United and head to Chelsea.

“I chose Chelsea because it was in London,” the World Cup and European Championship winner said. “I wanted to live in London.

“But I also chose Chelsea because Claudio Ranieri came physically and we had such a nice time together. He convinced me.

“He was so sweet and such a gentleman, for me, human beings are more important sometimes for what you decide professionally.”

Petit would go on to make 76 appearances for the Blues across three years, before further injuries led to him retiring in 2005.

He ended his career with 63 caps for France and over 500 appearances for Arsenal, Chelsea, Barcelona and Monaco combined.

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What did Petit say at the time?

When Petit signed for Chelsea 25 years ago, he was delighted to have made the switch back to the Premier League.

He said after his transfer was announced: “I realised when I was in Barcelona how much I missed life in England.

“Chelsea made the better approach to me, and they were very determined, very strong, and that is why I made my decision.”

Petit didn’t reveal the snubbing of Arsenal at the time, but he did get asked about interest from Man United and Ferguson.

He refused to comment on that in 2001 despite confirming that it was true in his chat with talkSPORT this week.